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President Macron Launches Global Incentive for Child Online Safety

This announcement follows a number of online safety changes brought in by the French government in recent years which included rules intended to prevent minors accessing adult websites, age-verification, and privacy rules for underage users. If you are affected by anything touched on within this article, follow the links to our various support services or click on the blue logo icon at the bottom right of the screen to start using Cybersmile Assistant, our smart AI support assistant.

Speaking at the Paris Peace Forum 2022 in Paris, French President Emmanuel Macron has announced the creation of the Children Online Protection Laboratory, which aims to improve the online safety of children across the world.

Child safety online is a huge issue in Europe, encompassing key aspects of online child safety such as privacy protection, combating cyberbullying, the proliferation of child sexual abuse material and child exploitation, age verification on adult websites and social networks, mental well-being and digital literacy, to name a few.

The new multi-stakeholder incentive is the result of consultation with digital platforms, charities, advocacy groups and other members of civil society, who will also be playing key roles in its implementation. The initial objectives outlined by the new Protection Lab will be to identify robust protocols and solutions that will enable children to use digital tools safely and benefit from their potential without being exposed to abuse or harmful content.

“We welcome this latest commitment as an important step forward in addressing the pressing issues facing young internet users today. As the internet continues to become more prevalent in our lives, it is essential that we recognize the risks and challenges that our children are facing and continue to work towards creating a safer, inclusive and more rewarding online environment for them.”

Dan Raisbeck, Co-founder, The Cybersmile Foundation

Meta’s Facebook, Instagram and Whatsapp, alongside other major platforms such as Google, Microsoft, Amazon, Twitter, Snapchat, TikTok, and French platform Dailymotion, will all be involved in the new Lab’s work and will also be joined by the UN, UNICEF and other civil society organizations..

Estonia, Argentina and New Zealand have all committed to help set up the new Protection Laboratory alongside the United Nations and other key partners. Speaking at an event on the protection of children in cyberspace, which was held in parallel with the Paris Peace Forum, Estonian president Alar Karis commented on the importance of the initiative, stating that “We must do everything within our power to protect the vulnerable in cyberspace. Through education and training, we must raise the level of awareness of the threats posed by the Internet. Estonia is working closely with other countries in implementing programs needed for the protection of children on the Internet, and we look forward to the ideas the lab will come up with in that regard.”

The announcement of this incentive follows a number of online safety changes brought in by the French government over the last few years including rules intended to prevent minors accessing adult websites as well as age-verification and privacy rules for underage users.

If you are affected by anything touched on within this article, we can help you. Visit our Help Center or click on the blue logo icon at the bottom right of the screen to open Cybersmile Assistant, our smart AI support assistant.

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